People news 11/9/02

Matthews promotes AIDS awareness

SEATTLE -- Dave Matthews had a simple reason for playing at an AIDS awareness concert: He remembers when AIDS emerged, and many of his fans -- like 19-year-old singer Michelle Branch, who also performed -- do not.

"I was a kid in the '80s," he said before performing Thursday night at MTV's "Staying Alive" concert. "I remember this fear that people had. You couldn't stop it. It seemed to become this invisible murderer.

"The people who are 15 to 25 now were very small or didn't exist when that happened."

Like many health officials, Matthews thinks distance from that initial fear can lead to apathy and ignorance among young people -- the same way the fear of nuclear war largely dissipated among those born after the height of the Cold War.

Branch said she could attest to that.

"Personally, it's always one of those things: You say, 'That doesn't affect me,' or, 'That's over in Africa,' or, 'That was something in my parents' generation."'

Angry Guns N' Roses fans go on rampage

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Thousands of irate fans rampaged outside a downtown venue after a Guns N' Roses concert was canceled because lead singer Axl Rose failed to appear.

Police used pepper spray to disperse the crowd surging around GM Place Thursday night. There were no reports of injuries.

A band spokesman said bad weather in Los Angeles held up Rose's flight to Vancouver. The band practiced without him Wednesday.

The spokesman said a concert scheduled Friday at the Tacoma Dome, about 30 miles south of Seattle, would go on as planned.

Thursday's trouble began when the doors didn't open as scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Tempers flared when the cancelation was announced about an hour later.

Within 15 minutes, the crowd turned into an angry mob that smashed some GM Place windows.

Police and stadium security tried to move the crowd away from the broken glass, and ordered fans to disperse after a Roman candle was fired toward the officers.

The performance was to have been the first in the North American leg of the band's Chinese Democracy World Tour.

'J.Lo' in dispute over name of perfume

LOS ANGELES -- It might have seemed like a bright idea when Jennifer Lopez agreed to name her new line of perfume "Glow by J. Lo," but the folks at Glow Industries are taking a dimmer view.

The name represents a trademark infringement, according to the Los Angeles-based company, which sells scented products, including a perfume called Glow.

The company, which filed suit in August, went to court Thursday seeking a preliminary injunction stopping Lopez and fragrance partner Coty Inc. from using the name until the matter is resolved.

Attorney Lisa Pearson, who represents Lopez and Coty, argued that the two product lines are packaged and sold to different buyers. Lopez's perfume, lotion and shower gel are found in department stores, she said, while Glow's bath and body products are sold in specialty stores.

Pearson also pointed out that the names aren't exactly the same.

"The name is a composite," she said of Glow by J. Lo. "And these are two different genres of products."

U.S. District Judge Margaret Morrow ordered both sides to return to court Dec. 6 for another pretrial hearing.

Concert schedule put on hold due to surgery

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Bruce Springsteen is postponing two more concerts because E Street Band saxophone player Clarence Clemons is recovering from surgery for a detached retina.

A concert scheduled Saturday in Columbus has been moved to Dec. 16, and a Sunday show in Indianapolis has been rescheduled for Dec. 17, according to Springsteen's Web site.

Clemons, 60, underwent surgery after a show Monday night in Houston, causing a Wednesday performance in Austin to be postponed until March 2.

Justin Doyle, marketing manager for Value City Arena in Columbus, said tickets issued for the Saturday concert will be valid for the December show or refunds will be available starting Tuesday.-- From wire reports